A Gift Giving Economy: Craigslist

Wikipedia defines a gift giving economy as …

“A gift economy is an economic system in which goods and services are given without any explicit agreement for immediate or future quid-pro-quo. “

According to The Economies of Online Cooperation: Gifts and Public Good in Cyberspace by Peter Kollock, a gift giving economy can be defined as:

The processes of providing a free good or service without expecting direct reciprocation or payment. When giving a gift there is no literal explicit statement asking for reciprocation, but the gift giving is motivated by the enhancement of social relations.

When using the internet as a medium for gift giving it is almost next to impossible to ensure reciprocity. It is also possible to offer gifts to individuals that are unknown to us. There are many reasons that people would want to give gifts despite the fact that the gift is not always reciprocated.

Public Good- Giving a gift can be motivated by the fact that it benefits the entire group. Posting information becomes a public good in turn it becomes available to literally anyone who happens to come upon that information or anyone who seeks it.

Some reasons why people are motivated to give gifts…

RECIPROCITY- Individuals give gifts in hopes that they will receive gifts in the future.

REPUTATION- Individuals give gifts in hopes to promote their individual selves. By contributing they want to be recognized in some form, perhaps as being a good Samaritan.

SENSE OF EFFICACY- Individuals give gifts in order to feel that they have made some impact or contribution to their environment.

NEED- Individuals give gifts simply because there is a need for that public good.

ATTACHMENT- Individuals give gifts because they have a genuine connection and attachment to their community.

ALTRUISM- Individuals give gifts simply because they value the outcomes of others.

So what are some examples of a gift giving economy?

-Flickr

-Free software community

-Wikipedia

And…

According to The High Tech Gift Economy by Richard Barbrook :

“In the intervening period, blogging has become the public face of this new way of working. What was once the preserve of a small minority is now a mass phenomenon.”

Thus…

This Blog itself is a gift giving economy!

I will now attempt to argue that Craigslist is a part of a gift giving economy:

Craigslist has many features that would constitute as part of this gift giving economy:

*Discussion Forums- People can click on any array of topics and provide posts. Some of these posts are not simply random discussion but actually provide “gifts” in the form of knowledge and advice.

For example there is a specific “legal” category where people can post questions or request help about legal matters.

-One post asked the following question about the 14^th amendment :

I have a question about constitutional law. If someone is being tried for a crime, is acquitted, and the alleged victim perjured themselves on several occasions, and it becomes obvious that it was a false accusation, is this considered a violation of the 14th Amendment providing equal protection under the law?

This person was given a variety of responses, for example one person gave this answer:

First, Constitutional violations are committed by governments, not individuals. Unless you contend the government coerced the victim into a wrongful act, the Constitution isn't really implicated at all. Second, the Equal Protection Clause has a very simple purpose, to make sure that people in "suspect classes" - such as racial or religious minorities - are treated similarly to others. Nothing in your post suggests that the supposed "perjury" was part of some plan (again, by the government) to railroad Catholics, or Jainists, or Fijians. If you contend there was a wrongful government act, you might have a violation of the Due Process Clause, but those are hard to show.

A person looking for legal advice about a specific issue, for example divorce, can also check out that specific discussion board.

-There is also a services area where people can offer services; some of these are free of charge.

Individuals can contribute to this online gift-giving community. There are a variety of reasons a person might help someone on craigslist by offering a free-gift. Whatever the reason for participation, the fact remains that craigslist success depends on the people who contribute.

Sources:

Barbrook, R. ( 2005.) The High Tech Gift Economy. First Monday.

Smith, M. , Kollock, P. (1999.) Communities in Cyberspace.

Wikipedia

Craigslist